The Cleveland Browns and their fans have had Week 13 circled on their calendars for quite some time, and it is officially here. Deshaun Watson is in line to officially make his debut with the Browns in Week 13 against his former team in the Houston Texans. This will mark Watson's first NFL game played in nearly two years.
By now, everyone knows the story surrounding Watson. The star quarterback was accused by over 20 women of sexual assault during massage sessions, which eventually resulted in him picking up a 11-game suspension. Watson sat out the entire 2021 season with the Texans anyways, and was eventually traded to the Browns this past offseason.
Watson will come in and immediately provide hope to a Browns team that is barely holding onto hope that they could qualify for the playoffs this season. With Watson now set to make his debut for the Browns against the Texans, let's take a look at three bold predictions for him in his first NFL action of the season.
3. Deshaun Watson will throw a touchdown pass to Amari Cooper on the Browns first drive
There could be some rust for Watson considering how long it's been since he has played an NFL game. A lot of things have changed since the last time he's played, but Watson now finds himself on a team with an extremely potent offense around him. He could be the final piece to help things really take off.
Watson's first drive won't be perfect, but that's what happens when you don't play a game in nearly two years. The good news is that he will be shaking off the rust against a truly terrible Texans team. Houston is trying to rebuild after moving on from Watson, but the results in their first season have been wildly disappointing.
Watson won't be at his best early, but he will lead the Browns to a touchdown on their first drive. He will get some help from Nick Chubb, who rips off a 27-yard run on the second play from scrimmage, and he eventually will cap things off with a five-yard strike to his new top target in Amari Cooper to give Cleveland a quick 7-0 lead.
2. Deshaun Watson will finish the day with four total touchdowns
It may not be rainbows and butterflies all day long for Watson, but the Texans defense will likely offer him little resistence throughout the day. The Texans won't get any more points in the first quarter after their opening drive score, and will head into the second quarter up 7-3 after Houston gets a field goal on their second offensive drive.
That's the closest they will get, though, as Watson will heat up beginning in the second quarter. Watson will quickly lead the Browns down the field on their first drive of the second quarter, which will result in him finding David Njoku for a 16-yard touchdown pass on a seam route. It's a tight window for Watson to hit, and it will end up being the best throw of the day for him.
Watson will also make an impact on the ground as a runner, picking up a three-yard rushing score later in the second quarter to give Cleveland a 21-6 lead heading into the half. Watson will then pick up his fourth touchdown of the day on Cleveland's first possession of the second half by hitting Kareem Hunt for an eight-yard touchdown, essentially ending the game then and there.
1. Deshaun Watson will lead the Browns to a blowout victory over the Texans
The Texans have been horrible lately, and they failed to look competitive for much of their Week 12 outing against the Miami Dolphins. That will continue into this game, where Watson will quickly shake off the rust and showcase just how dangerous Cleveland is now that they finally have their star quarterback under center.
Watson's fourth and final score of the day will push the score to 28-6, and the Browns will get two more touchdowns on the day through Nick Chubb on the ground to close out their scoring. The Texans will get another field goal and a rushing touchdown from Dameon Pierce, but it won't change much, with the final score coming in at 42-16.
This will be an extremely encouraging debut for Watson, although it's clear there will be bigger challenges ahead of him. The Texans are no match for anyone right now, and Watson will do what was expected of him by throttling their defense all day long. With this win in the books, Cleveland will begin to make one last push to see if they can sneak their way into the postseason.
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